Cards face big game at Havelock

Thursday

Oct 11, 2012 at 12:01 AM

Football weather has arrived just in time for the biggest game in recent memory for Jacksonville High. With autumn in the air, the Cardinals head to Havelock on Friday with the Coastal 3-A Conference title on the line.

Rick Scoppe-Sports Editor/The Daily News

Football weather has arrived just in time for the biggest game in recent memory for Jacksonville High. With autumn in the air, the Cardinals head to Havelock on Friday with the Coastal 3-A Conference title on the line.

That can’t be right, can it?

Are these the same Cardinals that went 2-20 in coach Beau Williams first two seasons? Actually, they’re not, not even close.

These Cardinals (6-2, 3-1) are better, much better.

And a win against perennial 3-A power Havelock (7-1, 4-0) would only further cement the distance the Cardinals have put between their recent past and the present.

It’s conference championship week. That, at least, is what both coaching staffs are calling it. Neither team can actually clinch the league title with a win, but a loss would realistically, if not mathematically, eliminate the Cardinals from a shot at the conference crown.

“Yeah, conference championship, chance for it if we win,” Williams said. “I talked with some of their coaches and they said it’s conference championship game week for them as well. So it’s kind of a big game for us.”

The biggest, Williams agreed, in his three-year tenure at Jacksonville.

“It’s kind of what you always work for,” he said. “The conference championship week for us started after the Washington loss (35-0 on Sept. 14). If we didn’t win out, we didn’t have a chance to get it.”

So far, so good for the Cardinals, who face their biggest challenge to date against the defending state 3-A champions who have won 12 straight league games and 27 of their last 29 games overall. The Rams beat Jacksonville 42-7 last year.

Did Williams believe the Cardinals could get here, get to a point where the second Friday night of October his team would be playing a game that could determine who goes on to win the league title?

“You want to say yeah,” he said. “We kind of thought we’d be able to play for it if we did what we’re supposed to do. So, yeah, I thought we could get there.”

If Havelock wins, the Rams would all but clinch the title given their final two games are against West Carteret (4-4, 1-3) at home and at West Craven (4-4, 2-2). If the Cardinals pull off the upset, they would be in position to claim the crown but still face a tough road trip to D.H. Conley (7-1, 3-1) next Friday night before playing host to rival White Oak (0-8, 0-4) in their regular-season finale on Oct 26.

D.H. Conley is at Washington (5-3, 2-2) Friday night in another game that could have a bearing on the chase for the league title.

For the Cardinals, however, the focus is on the black-clad Rams and the game at hand.

“It’s going to be very big, especially for the school and the whole city,” JHS junior running back Mario Jordan said. “People are saying we can’t do it, but we believe we can. They’re the big dog and everything, but we’ve still got to go into the game prepared, and coach is going to have us prepared.

“And we can do it. We’ve just got to believe.”

Teammate Zaire Hines, a senior defensive lineman, agreed.

“It’s exciting,” he said. “All week long we’ve had good practices. The team’s been more focused than they ever have been. We’re just ready for this game. It’s a big game. But they put their pants on the same way as we do. There’s no difference.

“We know they’re going to bring their A-game, and we’re going to bring ours. It’s going to be a battle of two good teams coming at it. But it’s also going to come down to who wants it more, and I think that’s going to make us better.”

Still, Williams said this week has been a new experience for his players, and it’s shown at times.

“They’re kind of lost,” he said. “They’ve never been there. So they’re half in, half out. They don’t know what to do.”

What they need to do Friday night, Williams said, is find a way to score against the stingiest defenses in the league — the Rams have allowed 35 points in four league games. And, he added, the Cardinals must continue to play defense like they’ve done most of the season against an offense led by quarterback Pharoh Cooper, who along with defensive back A.J. Copeland was selected to the Shrine Bowl.

“Coach Jim Bob (Bryant) does a great job with them, the no-huddle and picking people apart,” Williams said. “They’ve got great players. We’ve got to limit the big plays they have because they are a big-play team.

“But it’s been a good week. It’s fun. It’s been exciting and I’m looking forward to it.”